Mobile recycling 'on the increase'

31 March 2010 — 12:00 PM

Recycling an old mobile phone can be of benefit to people in developing nations and is on the increase, if recent suggestions are anything to go by.

According to Ovum, around eight million mobiles were recycled in the UK last year  double the number that was recycled two years ago.

The industry analyst also revealed the UK is the most developed and competitive handset recycling market in the world.

It reports that 30.2 million devices were recycled in Western Europe last year and more than a quarter - 26.5 per cent - of these were from the UK.

Mike Wilson, manager of mobiles and broadband at MoneySupermarket.com, said: "Even though you may no longer have a use for your unwanted phone, there is still a high demand for good quality handsets  re-use is the best form of recycling."

He added in some areas of the world, such as Africa, mobile phones are becoming the most popular form of communication because of limited landline access.

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